


Snow Angel

by mostlovedgirl



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien has gone a little crazy, Adrien is in denial, Aged-Up Character(s), Angst, Bunnyx REALLY needs to get a lock for her burrow, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Getting help from unlikely places, Kidnapping, LadyNoir - Freeform, Marichat, Miraculous Wish, Relationship Advice, Searching, Time Shenanigans, Worried Friends and Family, adrienette - Freeform, lost kitty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-01-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:47:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22109599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mostlovedgirl/pseuds/mostlovedgirl
Summary: Where is Marinette? It is a popular question this morning and Adrien is starting to worry. The 17-year-old lycée student can't do anything about it, but perhaps a certain cat-themed superhero can pick up her trail.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 254
Kudos: 543





	1. Missing

Adrien dropped his school bag next to his usual desk, took his seat, and waited for class to start. He scrolled through his calendar on his phone. Only three photoshoots this week, and the regular piano, fencing and Chinese practices. A chemistry quiz today, history paper due on Friday. It was actually shaping up to be a pretty light week. He might be able to sneak in a few more patrols with Ladybug. 

Or perhaps get Marinette to slip one of Paris’ favorite heroes a few cookies on her balcony. Either option sounded fine to him.

Speaking of Marinette, where was she? Class was going to start in two minutes. She’d been making a special effort to squeak into class five minutes before the final bell since starting their second year of lycée and no longer having the luxury of living across the street from school. She probably overslept again.

The seconds ticked by. The bell rang. The history class started. The desk next to Adrien remained empty. 

He didn’t start to worry until class ended and there was still no sign of the bluenette. Adrien hoped she wasn’t ill. She had seemed fine yesterday.

He could text her and ask if she was okay, but he felt that might be overstepping. Besides, he didn’t want to disturb her if she was feeling unwell. He decided to try the next best thing to messaging Marinette directly.

 **[Adrien]** Hey. Have you heard from Marinette this morning? She wasn’t in class.

A reply popped up almost instantly.

 **[Alya]** I haven’t. Give me a sec.

Adrien pocketed his phone and walked down the hall to his calculus class. He set his phone on his desk and unpacked his tablet and stylus. The phone’s screen lit up a minute before the bell rang.

 **[Alya]** She’s not answering her phone. I’ll try the bakery next.

 **[Adrien]** Thanks. Class is about to start. I’ll check back in with you later.

Adrien pushed the budding sense of unease away as the teacher began lecturing about integrals.

With his math class over, Adrien once again packed up to move to classical world literature. They were studying Shakespeare’s sonnets. He was gleaning so much glorious material for Chat Noir to use later. It was almost better than his Sunday night ritual of scouring the internet for new cat puns and memes. Almost.

Adrien did his best not to bump into anyone on the stairs as he headed down to his next classroom with his attention focused on his phone.

He had received six new texts and a missed call in the last hour.

 **[Alya]** I talked to Sabine. She hasn’t seen Marinette since last night.

 **[Alya]** She assumed that she just missed her leaving this morning.

 **[Alya]** Mari still isn’t answering her phone.

 **[Alya]** She wasn’t in our French class last period.

 **[Alya]** Let me know when you see her. Okay?

That uneasy feeling from earlier had lodged itself in the pit of his stomach and was growing. 

He typed a quick promise to Alya that he would notify her when he saw their friend. 

The missed call and sixth text were from Mme. Cheng. 

Adrien rounded the last step and stopped out of the flow of traffic before opening the text. The squirming feeling in his gut was getting worse.

 **[Mama Cheng]** Have you seen Marinette this morning? Alya just called and no one seems to have seen her since last night. Tom and I are starting to worry.

Adrien failed to notice his foot tapping out a nervous staccato against the floor tiles.

 **[Adrien]** I haven’t seen her this morning either. I will have her call you the minute I do.

He pressed ‘send,’ hoping that his optimism in stating ‘when’ not ‘if’ he sees Marinette was not unfounded. He didn’t want to start thinking that way. 

He stood there, staring at his phone, trying to decide what to do, as the halls emptied and the next period of classes began. He felt Plagg start nudging his hip from inside his book bag. It was the final push he needed.

Adrien hurriedly stopped by the school nurse and told her that he wasn’t feeling well and asked to be excused from his classes for the rest of the day. 

The nurse took one look at his pale face and agreed to let the rest of his teachers know of his absence. Having a reputation for being a model student had its advantages.

Adrien walked out the front doors of the school as quickly as he could without drawing attention to himself. As soon as he had the freedom of the pavement outside, he ran to the shadows of the nearest alleyway. 

Usually Plagg talked to Adrien from wherever he was lounging at the time, but as soon as they were hidden from view, the kwami of destruction phased through the bag and floated at eye level. His tail was flicking back and forth agitatedly. He crossed his stubby arms over his chest and narrowed his toxic green eyes at his holder.

“Well, what are you waiting for? An engraved invitation?” Plagg drawled exasperatedly, but Adrien could read the subtext after four years of partnership. His kwami was worried. 

He finally had a name for that feeling crawling its way up from his stomach and grasping at his throat now. Fear _._ It was definitely fear.

“Plagg, claws out!”

* * *

Five minutes later Chat Noir landed on Marinette’s balcony with a soft _flump._

Nothing looked out of place, but something... wasn’t quite right. Chat couldn’t quite put his claw on it just yet. 

He moved the information to the back of his mind to let his subconscious work out whatever it was. His attention turned to the skylight hatch leading to his friend’s bedroom. He eased the door open and poked his head inside. 

Still nothing seemed amiss. Her bed was unmade (not uncommon with how quickly she usually needed to leave for school after hitting snooze on her alarm four times). Bits of pink fabric were strewn across her sewing desk and pinned to the dress form in the corner. Pictures of her friends were taped to the walls. It all looked perfectly normal for her room.

Chat Noir dropped onto the loft, careful to land next to the bed to keep his boots from dirtying her bedding. That’s when it hit him—the thing that was out of place.

There was an unfamiliar scent in Marinette’s room. 

He sniffed around the bed. It smelled mostly of pleasant things that he associated with the young designer, like vanilla and sugar. Underneath the comforting scents was another, unfamiliar one.

Chat Noir wasn’t quite sure how to describe it. It smelled... _cold._ It was like the sharp sting of ice on a bitterly cold day when the wind bites at your ears and nose and burns your cheeks with snowflakes like shards of glass. The scent stood out in sharp contrast to Marinette who smelled like everything warm and comforting.

He took a few minutes to sniff around the rest of her room. He didn’t pick up the foreign scent anywhere except near the bed. He did find Marinette’s phone under her bed. It was on silent and the battery was nearly dead. She had forty-six missed calls and messages. Chat was willing to bet that most of them were from Alya. 

He left the phone where it was and pulled himself back up to the balcony. 

The icy scent was on the edge of the hatch door. He also smelled it on one of the many potted plants surrounding Marinette’s oasis. Whoever it was must have brushed against the leaves. 

The intruder had entered through the skylight from the balcony, just as Chat Noir had. 

A string of events started taking shape in his mind. He didn’t like where they led.

A stranger had come to Marinette’s balcony, let themselves into her room, and taken the girl from her bed.

Someone had kidnapped Marinette.

* * *

Chat Noir spent the rest of the afternoon sniffing around rooftops near the Dupain-Cheng bakery in an ever expanding radius. From time to time he dropped to ground level as well, but that didn’t seem right for some reason and he inevitably returned to the roofs.

After a few hours, he got lucky. (No one was more surprised than him since good luck was not his forte.)

Someone in a building to the south had left a pool towel hanging out to dry on a balcony railing. A brush of odor on the colorful material matched the one locked in Chat’s scent memory. 

He continued searching to the south. He had never put so much effort into tracking before. Why hadn’t he thought to practice before now?

An hour later, he found his next clue. He followed the scent along a straight line of roofs at a full run on all fours. Chat’s mind presented him with two pieces of information as his claws dug into the roof tiles and his legs propelled him forward.

First, the scent was getting harder to follow as more time passed. Second, Chat knew of only three groups who took routes like this. None were great options.

He slid to a stop at the end of the roof line and stood easily on the edge. His breathing was labored and he could feel his heart thumping rapidly in his chest. Anxiety and exertion were flooding his system with adrenaline. Chat’s tail twitched behind him just as Plagg’s had before transforming that afternoon. A low growl slipped past his clenched teeth. 

He’d lost the trail.

Chat needed help. He opened the map feature on his baton and searched for Ladybug’s icon. She wasn’t there. It was a long shot anyway. They usually weren’t transformed this time of day unless there was an Akuma attack. Fortunately he hadn’t had to deal with one of those today. Chat could only handle one crisis at a time.

He switched his baton to phone mode and called his partner. It went to voicemail. 

“Ladybug, I’ve got a bit of a situation here. Do you remember Marinette Dupain-Cheng? I think she may be a friend of yours, but that’s not important right now.”

He did his best to keep the strain out of his voice. Ladybug didn’t want an update on his emotional state. She only wanted cold, hard facts. 

“Look, I think she’s been kidnapped. No one has seen her all day. I went by her house to check if I could find anything and picked up an unfamiliar scent. I’m tracking it south through the fifth arrondissement right now. And, LB, I’m tracking it across the _roofs_. We might be looking at an akuma or sentimonster, though it’s been pretty quiet for one of Hawkmoth’s games. There’s a possibility it might be a—another miraculous holder.”

He paused for a moment to let that sink in.

“Anyway, call me when you get this. I’m going to keep looking. Bye.”

Chat Noir ended the call and continued his pursuit.

Frustration outweighed his anxiety hours later as the sun started to set beyond the Paris skyline. He hadn’t been able to pick up the trail again. He tracked it as far as he could, but he lost it. 

He groaned as he slid down a brick wall protruding from the roof he was currently on. He sat on the plaster and released his transformation. A crackle of bright green energy washed over his body and Plagg sprang from the ring. Adrien handed him a piece of Camembert before the grumpy little cat could ask.

“How’s it going, kid?” Plagg asked, then tossed the chunk of smelly cheese in the air and swallowed it whole. Normally with him it was eat first, ask questions later. 

“I lost the trail.” Adrien thunked his head against the bricks behind him. The small pain this caused was a slight comfort in the face of Adrien’s disgust with his tracking skills.

“I know, kid. But, honestly, you did great. It wasn’t an easy scent to find. I’m impressed that you were able to follow it this far.”

If Plagg was trying to comfort him and willingly handing out compliments, it really was the end of days.

Adrien appraised his old friend. “You’re really worried about her, aren’t you.” It wasn’t a question.

Plagg stared off to the south. Adrien was sure the little glutton had heard him, but was declining to comment. 

Plagg had always seemed partial to Marinette. Adrien didn’t know why. His kwami had never met the girl, but he did seem to bring her up more than Adrien’s other friends.

“Let’s go, kid. There’s nothing more we can do tonight, and I’m sure Pantsuit is wondering where you are by now.”

Adrien pushed himself to his feet. He had no idea what he was going to tell Nathalie, but he didn’t really care right now. Maybe he would do something crazy and try telling her the truth that one of his friends was missing and he had been out all day looking for her. Telling Nathalie the truth. He scoffed. There was a concept.

“Plagg, claws out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge, fat thank you to zenmisery, VioletteSaber, and my sister for beta reading/pushing me to start posting this! <3


	2. Ashes, Ashes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette wakes up. Chat Noir gets some unexpected help.

Marinette started coming to with a splitting headache. 

Ugh. Waking up was usually bad enough, but waking up with a headache this bad? 

_Kill me now,_ she thought with a moan.

She was about to ask Tikki to get her some pain medication when an unexpected voice stopped her. It was familiar and haunting all at once—dancing on the edge between dreams and nightmares.

“Hello, Princess.”

Only one person ever called her ‘Princess.’ It sounded like him... but it didn’t. 

She pressed the heel of her hand to her temple and winced. A tender lump had formed on the side of her head. That would explain the splitting headache.

She peeled her eyes open and searched for the source of the words. The sight that met her was not what she was expecting. This wasn’t her room. She wasn’t in her home. She didn’t know where she was.

She bolted upright and a rough, pink blanket fell from her torso into her lap. It was scratchy and didn’t exactly smell fresh. 

The thing she was laying on squeaked with her movements. Marinette lay a hand on the lumpy surface. It was an old mattress. Her skin started to crawl. She _really_ hoped nothing else was living in the mattress. She tried not to think about it. 

Beams of orange sunlight slanted in between the boards of the walls. She couldn’t tell if the sun was rising or setting.

The room was large and cavernous with a high ceiling and exposed beams. It looked like an old warehouse. The air was a bit stale and musty smelling, but not too bad, all things considered. 

Marinette took stock of herself next. She was still wearing her light pink t-shirt and grey pajama pants she had gone to bed in. Her hair was still done up in pigtails, but they felt a bit messy and lopsided. 

She touched an earlobe briefly and held in a sigh of relief. Her earrings were intact. Whoever had abducted her hadn’t taken her miraculous. She didn’t know where Tikki was, though. 

The only thing that seemed to be wrong with her was the near-migraine-inducing goose egg on the side of her head. 

She scanned the room for the owner of the voice that was at once so right and so wrong. Old crates, canvas tarps and a rusted out delivery truck littered the room. She didn’t see anyone. 

Marinette’s gaze shifted upward. A pale figure perched in the shadows. He was gazing at her intently with glacier blue eyes. His tail swung gently back and forth behind him. 

Her breath caught in a gasp. _“Chat Noir?"_

He shook his head slowly in disappointment. “Tsk, tsk, Princess. How many times do I have to tell you? Chat Noir is gone. I’m _Chat Blanc_ _._ ” He gave the white bell at his throat a little flick with his claws. The little jingle it produced was hollow and sad sounding. Not like the happy little jingle of _her_ kitty’s bell. 

He was pure white from his cat ears nestled in his white hair down to the toes of his boots. The only color was the pallid peach of his skin and his electric blue eyes rimmed in coal black.

_No. Oh, please, no._

It was her living nightmare of three years ago all over again. 

Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. Her kitty. Her wonderful, brave kitty had somehow been akumatized in this timeline as well.

Marinette weighed her options. She wasn’t sure if Tikki was nearby. Even if she was, did this Chat Blanc know who she was? Could Hawkmoth see her transform through Chat’s eyes? Dare she risk it? But, wait. Her Chat didn’t know her secret identity. And if Chat or Hawkmoth knew, they would have taken her earrings while she was unconscious. But then—

Her head throbbed. It was like a warning that she was thinking too hard. It might be worth it to try transforming just to see if the headache would go away. She groaned and pressed the heel of her hand to her head again in an attempt to relieve the pain.

“Chat, what’s going on? Why did you bring me here?” Marinette asked even as she grit her teeth against the sharp pain pounding in her temple. 

“No little wings here,” Chat replied happily. 

She dropped her hand to her lap. _No little—what?_

“Do you remember what happened to you?” Maybe he would give her a clue to help her find the akuma.

“I followed a white rabbit and fell down a hole.” 

_Huh?_ Something was definitely wrong. Most akumas didn’t talk like characters from Alice in Wonderland. 

“Kitty, please, do you remember being akumatized?”

Chat Blanc glared at her. “ _He doesn’t hurt me anymore_ ,” he spat. “In fact, he’s never going to hurt anyone ever again. I made sure of it.” His tail lashed behind him dangerously. 

“What do you mean? I don’t understand.”

Chat Blanc stood on the beam he had been crouching on and started walking along its length. Marinette worried the old wood would give out and crash to the ground along with her kitty. 

He started to sing a children’s song, but it came out like an eerie, haunting melody that echoed off the high ceiling like a choir of ghosts. Each voice was out of time with the next. It made the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end.

“ _Ring around the rosie_   
_A pocket full of posies_   
_Ashes, ashes_   
_We all fall DOWN!”_

On the last word Chat Blanc flipped off the beam and landed on the dirt coated floor in a crouch about a meter from Marinette. He looked her straight in the eyes with a twisted smirk. 

“Ashes, ashes, Princess.”

Marinette grabbed the edge of the old blanket and pulled it up to her chin. She suddenly felt very, very cold.

* * *

Adrien was used to a certain level of stress in his life. School, work, fencing, piano, foreign languages—they all took a certain toll he was used to.

This was a different kind of stress. It wasn’t neatly arranged and color coded on his calendar. It wasn’t conveniently scheduled after school and forgotten during class. It couldn’t be rearranged by Nathalie at his father’s command.

Even Akuma attacks never took more than a few hours to resolve. Most took less than thirty minutes to purify. Then he and his Lady would resume their civilian lives. 

This wasn’t like that.

Marinette had been officially missing for thirty-four hours. Her parents had called the police. Officers had searched her home for clues. They interviewed him and her other friends and acquaintances. Their efforts had turned up nothing. No one had seen or heard from Marinette. 

Adrien wasn’t surprised that the search of her room hadn’t yielded results. There was no way for the police to sniff out that the culprit had entered and exited via her balcony. 

No evidence of forced entry was leading officials to speculate that the girl was simply another runaway. That was absolutely ridiculous. She had wonderful parents, a good home and supportive friends. Between the two of them, it was much more likely that Adrien would run away from home before Marinette Dupain-Cheng even considered it.

Adrien stuck to his regular schedule for as long as he could. A quick text to Alya at the start of lunch confirmed that the police had nothing. He ditched his afternoon classes and took to the roofs. 

Ladybug hadn’t responded to his voicemail. He growled as he sent a text to her yo-yo from his baton. 

_Where was she?!_

They had a missing persons case on their hands with probable miraculous involvement, and his partner was nowhere to be seen. There was nothing he could do about it right now. He would have to continue his search solo.

Annoyed, Chat Noir made his way back to the roofline where he lost the trail the evening before.

There wasn’t a trace of the scent now. The trail was cold. 

Chat Noir pulled up a city map on his baton and studied it. He highlighted the Dupain-Cheng bakery, the balcony where he caught the scent on that towel, and his current position. The three points more or less formed a straight line headed almost due south. 

Chat saved the locations and continued searching along the line he had extrapolated. He searched for hours. None of his miraculous enhanced senses picked up on any clues. Daylight was fading when he finally decided to take a break.

Just like the evening before, Adrien slumped against a wall on a wide roof and released his transformation. He tossed Plagg a piece of cheese and watched the sun set.

Plagg was uncharacteristically quiet. Adrien didn’t need to tell him that he had found nothing again today. Plagg already knew. 

“Any ideas?” Adrien asked as the sky burned red.

“You should eat something, kid,” Plagg advised solemnly. 

“I’m not hungry.”

“You’ll be able to think better with a full stomach,” Plagg prodded.

“I don’t have time for this, Plagg,” Adrien said snippily. “I need to find her.”

“Why do you care so much?” Plagg questioned, crossing his stubby arms across his chest.

“Why would you even ask that? She’s my friend.”

“Are you sure about that?” Plagg needled.

Adrien felt his jaw clench as he glared at his longtime friend and partner. Perhaps he was starting to get a little hangry, but right now he just felt irritated.

“Of course I’m sure,” Adrien snapped. “Marinette is my friend. She’s a very good friend. What’s wrong with you? You want to see her home safe too, don’t you?”

“Adrien—“

The argument was cut off when a white circle of light opened in the air near the pair. 

“Gah! Plagg! Claws out!”

Chat Noir was scrambling to his feet when a head of bright red hair topped by a pair of white and blue rabbit ears poked out of the portal. 

“Hey, Kitty Noir!” the woman called cheerfully with an edge of snark. She emerged from the portal and stood unabashed before the black cat hero. 

“Bunnyx! What are you doing here?”

“A friend of mine lost something. I’m trying to help her find it.”

“You know that Marinette is missing? Did Ladybug send you? Are you going to help me find her?” he asked hopefully. This might be the break he needed. 

“What?!” Bunnyx exclaimed. “Marinette? Marinette is missing?! When? How long? Where was she last seen?” She had advanced on him and was gripping his upper arms almost painfully.

Chat Noir was having a hard time keeping up with the rapid fire questions, especially with her close proximity. He leaned away from her, trying not to go cross eyed as her masked blue eyes filled his field of view. 

He didn’t have a chance to try to explain before Bunnyx kept talking. “Ugh, never mind. There’s no time.” She looked back at her portal. “Why is there never enough time?” she grumbled under her breath. Bunnyx released Chat and called out, “Hey! Come on through!”

Another young woman stepped through the circle of white light. She smiled kindly at him, but he could see the traces of sadness behind her eyes. When she spoke, her voice was soft and melodic.

“Hello, Adrien.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun, dun, dun! So many questions. So few answers that make sense. 
> 
> Drop a comment. I'm always happy to discuss. :)


	3. The Price

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette and Chat Noir get some answers.

Marinette pulled the itchy blanket closer around herself. It was an uncharacteristically cold morning for late spring. At least her head felt a little better after a few hours of fitful sleep on the old mattress.

She wandered around the dirty warehouse, toeing different piles of debris, mentally cataloguing what was here. She stepped carefully, very aware of how vulnerable her bare feet were. 

In short, there was not much that could be of use to her. 

She was hungry. She was cold. She needed to find Tikki. She needed to save her partner from the akuma. 

The bleached Chat Noir had returned to watching her from the rafters. It was her second day in this makeshift prison.

“Chat?”

“Yes, Princess?”

Marinette felt a flicker of hope every time he called her that. She just knew her kitty was still in there somewhere.

“Do you have anything to eat? I’m really hungry.”

“I’m afraid I don’t. Sorry, Princess. I’d get something for you, but I’m pretty sure you would try to run away and leave me.”

A tingle of nerves prickled up her spine. His tone had become pouty toward the end of his sentence. He sounded like a petulant child, not like her Chat Noir. His words were edged with something that made him sound a little….

 _No! I am not going to even_ think _that word. He’s my brave kitty. He is fighting what’s happened to him. He needs my help._

Unbidden, a memory of another Chat Blanc played across her mind. 

***

_A silent tear rolled down his cheek. She gently brushed it away with a finger._

_“Save me.”_

_“My poor kitty.”_

***

She saved him once. She would do it again. 

There was something odd about this Akuma, though. He hadn’t asked for or tried to take her earrings once. It further reinforced her belief that he didn’t know about her superhero persona.

“Chat Noir—“

“Chat Blanc,” he corrected. 

“—why did you bring me here?” she tried asking again. He always seemed willing to answer her questions. If only his answers made more sense. Although, she had noticed an improvement in his comprehensibility today.

“I won’t ever let anything happen to you.”

The coloring of her partner’s eyes was so wrong, but the emotion burning in them matched the conviction in his voice.

“Y-you are protecting me?” Chat nodded. “From what?” she asked.

Chat Blanc turned his head away like he was ashamed to meet her eyes. “I...made a mistake. I tried—I really did, but she slipped through my claws.”

“Who?”

Chat looked back at her. “The butterfly. Lies have wings and can fly far and wide.”

“Do you mean another akuma? Or Hawkmoth?” Her voice was a mixture of hesitant and eager. “Do you know who he is?”

Chat dropped from his perch to land in front of her, reaching for her hands. He looked down into her eyes. “I told you, Princess. He’ll never hurt us again.”

Marinette felt tears forming in her eyes. She didn’t understand. He was protecting her, but from what? He was sure that Hawkmoth was no longer a threat. A corner of her brain was prodding at her that she was missing something important, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. 

She was having a hard time thinking. It was probably due to hunger and stress. Her headache from yesterday was threatening to assault her again. 

Her stomach growled. “Please, Chat? Let me go find something to eat. I’ll come right back,” she tried. He wasn’t wrong about it being (mostly) a ruse to help her escape and find Tikki, but she didn’t have any better ideas.

“Oh, Marinette.” He released one of her hands to stroke a cheek with a finger. She tried not to shudder at his touch. “I really wish I could, but you’ll try to run home. I have to keep you safe, Princess.” 

“What good will it do me if I _starve_?” she challenged weakly.

She pulled her hand from his loose grip and placed both of her hands on his shoulders. It felt wrong. He was a few centimeters taller than he should be. His shoulders were a little too broad. 

“How old are you?” The question slipped out without her thinking. 

“I’m nineteen, Princess.”

Marinette stared at his face, her mind whirling. Her Chat Noir was seventeen. She didn’t know when exactly his birthday was, but he let slip once that he was a Libra, so she had a rough idea. 

“What did you say last night?” she asked urgently, gripping his shoulders tighter. “Something about a white rabbit.”

“I followed a white rabbit down a hole. That’s how I ended up here, M’lady.”

Marinette froze. Her brain produced two very important facts almost simultaneously. 

First, the white rabbit must be Bunnyx. Chat Noir must have been akumatized in the future and somehow ended up back here in her present. 

Second— 

“M-M’lady!?” she squeaked.

He knew. He knew she was Ladybug. 

Just like last time. 

It was too much. Her mind and body couldn’t take the strain any more.

Her eyes rolled back and her body went limp. She didn’t feel his strong hands catch her as she fainted. 

* * *

Chat Noir wasn’t sure if what his senses were telling him was the same as what was actually happening. 

_“Ladybug?”_

The young woman shook her head with sad eyes and a sympathetic smile on her lips. “I’m not your Lady. I do need your help, though. Could you help me find my kitty, please? I’m afraid he’s gotten into some mischief.”

She was the same in so many ways to his Ladybug, but there were some noticeable differences.

Most obvious was her coloring. Her mask and bodysuit were white instead of red. The spots on her suit were faded to a pale silver color. She had white gloves and boots with silver piping details where they met the spotted suit, similar to Lady Noir’s costume. The Chinese collar was similarly edged in silver. 

Her long hair was the color of fresh snow. It was pulled back into a high ponytail with a white ribbon. The way her thick bangs brushed the top of her mask and framed the sides of her face was the same. 

She was slightly taller than his Ladybug, and a little more, well, _developed._ He tried not to think about it. Ladybug would slap him hard enough to launch him into the Seine if she ever knew where his thoughts wandered sometimes. Honestly, though, he wasn’t _entirely_ to blame. Their super suits didn’t leave much to the imagination.

Her only accessories were a pair of white, silver spotted, stud earrings. A white yo-yo, also decorated with five silver spots, was strapped to her hip _._

He concentrated on her face. It was Ladybug’s face but less round and childlike. Her eyes…. They were the same pretty blue; accented by long, black, feathery lashes. He could lose himself in those eyes.

He regained his voice when he realized something very important. How did he not notice it immediately? 

His name. This young woman had called him by his name. His _civilian_ name. 

She knew who he was. 

“How? How did you…?”

“Know your name?” the stranger asked. Her lips twitched into a small smirk. “You told me. Rather, you will tell me. It’s a bit complicated.” She rubbed the back of her head the way Adrien did when he was feeling nervous. “Anyway, I’m Snow Bug. It’s nice to meet you.” She extended her hand. Even her voice was the same.

Years of etiquette training and muscle memory took over. He shook her white gloved hand. “Chat Noir. Pleased to make your acquaintance,” he said automatically. 

“Charming,” cut in Bunnyx, completely deadpan like she didn’t have time for this. The pair dropped their handshake and gave her their full attention. “Look I gotta bounce soon, so I’ll keep this as brief as possible.” She sucked in a large breath in preparation. “Snow Bug is from your future. Well, not _your_ future. Another you’s future. And he’s here somewhere—Chat Blanc, I mean. We’re trying to find him. And by we, I mean you two. I’ll do what I can to find out where he went from my burrow, but it gets complicated when diverging timelines start crossing.”

“What about Marinette?” Chat Noir asked. He hadn’t untangled Bunnyx’s rushed words quite yet, but he understood that this Snow Bug was looking for someone. He already had a missing person he was trying to find. 

Bunnyx laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Find Chat Blanc and I bet you’ll find Marinette. Trust me. I’ll try to find out what happened to your friend on my end too, okay? See you, Kitty, Snow. Good luck!” She dove back into her burrow with a flick of her rabbit ears, and the portal closed.

Chat Noir was left standing awkwardly on a random roof with Snow Bug. The sun set as they silently measured each other.

“Your eyes are green,” she said suddenly. “I had forgotten.”

“How do you know me?” Chat was one confused cat right now. 

Snow Bug gave him that same small, sad smile. “Let’s take this conversation someplace a little more private,” she suggested. She pulled the yo-yo from her waist and tossed it out on its string into the night. It found an anchor point and she swung off. 

Chat Noir stood frozen, watching her zip away like an idiot. She was a Ladybug, but not _his_ Ladybug. His heart clenched. He belatedly grabbed his baton from his back and vaulted after her. 

He followed her across the city all the way to the observation deck on Montparnasse Tower. He spun his baton between his fingers with practiced ease and tucked it away on his back before settling next to Snow Bug on the glass barrier encircling the roof. 

She was sitting with one leg tucked under her, the other swinging carelessly over the edge, leaning back on her hands and gazing at the Eiffel Tower shining before them in the distance. It was a spectacular view on this clear evening.

“Are you familiar with the multiverse theory?” she asked without preamble.

“For every choice we make, an alternate universe is created. There are infinite universes existing simultaneously in parallel to each other but never overlapping,” Chat Noir rattled off.

“Sometimes mistakes are made and timelines are crossed.” Snow Bug stared at the city lights. “It started five years ago. Well, five years ago for me.” She looked at Chat Noir. “You’re, what? Seventeen?” Chat nodded. She looked back at the Tower. “So three years for you then.”

Her leg stopped swinging. Chat Noir watched her stiffen. “I…,” she hesitated. “A Ladybug from one of the other timelines did something stupid. I don’t know exactly what, but it lead to her partner finding out her identity.

“Bunnyx found me and took me to a future where Paris was destroyed. The city was underwater and everyone had been killed.

“Chat Noir had been akumatized. He had... destroyed everything. Even the moon was damaged. He had been alone for _months._ ” Her voice cracked. She slumped forward and brushed at her eyes. She spoke softly, caressing each word.

“He wanted my earrings. He and his Ladybug had been in love. When Hawkmoth got him, Chat Noir became Chat Blanc and destroyed everything—even her. He wanted her back. He was going to use my earrings and his ring to make a wish and fix everything. _He was so lonely._ ” She squeezed her eyes shut, remembering the pain. 

“It broke my heart to see him like that. He was still my kitty, so I made a choice.” She straightened her posture and her voice steeled with determination. “We made a wish together.”

“You _what?!_ ” Chat yelped. “But the price!” He couldn’t believe his ears—human or cat. 

“We paid it!” She pierced him with her sapphire blue eyes, daring him. “I chose to stay with him. Bunnyx told me that your Ladybug changed the timeline so that you were never akumatized in the first place. We each made choices, Adrien. You don’t have the right to judge me for mine.”

Chat Noir took a moment to absorb her words. _There were universes out there where his Lady chose him._

He tentatively asked his next question. “What happened? When you made the wish, I mean.”

“Paris was restored. The people lived. Everything went back to the way it was except for us. He remained Chat Blanc, but without the akuma. I became Snow Bug. It’s sort of like we were marked for making the wish. Not just us. Our kwamis too.”

Snow bug chuckled into the back of her hand. “You should have seen the look on Plagg’s face the first time Chat Blanc dropped his transformation. He had agreed to it, but was so miffed at being a bleached cat. Tikki took it a little better.”

“You all sacrificed—for _him_?” Chat asked mystified. _For me?_ The thought went unspoken.

Snow Bug cocked her head and gave him the softest look. “Your Ladybug and kwamis love you very, very much, Adrien. In any universe, you are loved. Never forget that.”

Chat Noir ducked his face away from her gaze. He never imagined how much it would affect him to hear his Lady’s voice speak those words.

Slim arms wrapped around him and pulled him into her shoulder. She held him, not like a lover, but like a mother comforting a child. Adrien hadn’t been held like this since his own mother disappeared. He hadn’t realized how much he missed it. He needed it so much.

He let her hold him for a few minutes. A pang of jealousy toward his alternate self cut through him. He hoped that other Adrien appreciated what he had.

He pulled away and leveled his glowing green eyes on her blue ones. “What was the price?” He had to know.

Snow Bug answered him without flinching. “Besides becoming a group of albinos? My Adrien kept his memories of his time as an akuma, and everyone who had been affected by his Cataclysm came back except our families.”

“But!” Chat Noir gasped in shock. “M’lady! Your parents—!”

Snow Bug stilled him with a hand on his cheek. “It’s okay. It was hard at first, and I still miss them, but we saved Paris. I saved my Prince. We defeated Hawkmoth. The city and all our friends are safe. We are getting our happily ever after. It’s okay.”

“Wait, you defeated Hawkmoth? Who is he?”

“I’m sorry, Kitten. I can’t tell you. You and your Ladybug have to do things your own way in your own time.”

“But—“

“No buts, Kitty. Now let’s go find your friend and my husband.” 

With that, she leapt to her feet and jumped off the building, barely casting out her yo-yo in time to keep from crashing into the pavement.

“Wait. _YOUR WHAT?!_ ” 

She was already gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you have it. The introduction of Snow Bug! What did you think? Were you expecting that? This whole fic came about because I saw a color edit someone did on a screenshot from the Chat Blanc episode where Ladybug is nose-to-nose with Chat Blanc. They recolored her hair and mask white and it looked fantastic. It stuck in my brain and eventually this fic was born. (I wish I could find that image again.) 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this! Drop a comment. I love to interact with all you lovely people. <3


	4. Love Is Blind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow Bug has an idea. Adrien is in denial.

Chat Noir trailed Snow Bug all the way to a roof near Marinette’s home.

Snow Bug spoke as soon as he landed next to her. She was all business now. This was the Ladybug he knew. 

“You said your friend Marinette was missing right? And Bunnyx said that if we found Chat Blanc we’d probably find her. The reverse should also be true—if we find Marinette, we’ll find Chat Blanc. What have you got so far?”

“She disappeared two days ago. I was able to track an unfamiliar scent from her room to a place in the city south of here, but then I lost the trail.” Frustration had seeped into his voice. 

Snow Bug gave him that appraising look again.

“What?” Chat asked defensively.

“Are you sure she’s just a friend?” She sounded a little incredulous. 

“You sound like Plagg,” he grumbled. “She’s a very good friend, but that’s all we are. Besides, we’re both interested in other people.”

“Hmm.” She focused her attention back on Marinette’s balcony. It looked so sad and lonely without her fairy lights on to brighten the space. “Maybe what we need is a bit of luck.” She tossed her white and silver yo-yo into the air. “Lucky Charm!”

A paper about the size of a postcard gently floated down. Snow Bug easily plucked the white paper with silver spots on one side out of the air. She flipped it over and her face melted into the same soft look he had seen earlier when she spoke of her prince.

“What is it?” he asked.

“A photo,” was all the explanation she gave. 

He stood close beside her to see the picture over her shoulder in the dim city light. 

It was...him. A blue eyed, platinum blond, slightly aged up Adrien Agreste staring at a young woman with more love in his eyes than he’d ever seen anyone look at another before. 

The young woman's back was turned to the camera, but it was obviously Snow Bug. She had the same white blonde hair and fair skin. Her hair was loose and fell past her shoulders. She was wearing a pink dress with elbow length sleeves. The knee length skirt fluttered with her movements. It looked like the shot was taken as she was stepping into other Adrien’s arms. 

“I remember this day,” she said softly. She gently traced other Adrien’s face with a finger. “I loved him for so many years,” she said absently. “Then it turned out that he loved me too.” She laughed lightly. “It was so stupid. We were so in love that we couldn’t see what was right in front of us. ‘Love is blind, and lovers cannot see, the pretty follies that themselves commit.’”

“Shakespeare?” Chat Noir asked. He didn’t know Ladybug was familiar with _The Merchant of Venice_. 

“One cannot be married to Adrien Agreste without becoming familiar with the Bard’s works,” she winked.

It was official. He was absolutely jealous of other Adrien.

“Don’t worry, Sunshine. You’ll catch your Lady one of these days.” She ruffled his hair playfully. Chat Noir was starting to get ‘big sister’ vibes from her. He wasn’t sure how he felt about that. 

“Any suggestions?” he grumped. 

“Patience. Kindness. All those things she already loves about you.”

Chat’s cat ears pricked forward. “She loves me?”

“Not in the way you want her to, but she does.”

His ears flattened. “But you said that you loved your Adrien for years.”

“Give that some thought.” She looked at the photo again and got that ‘I have an idea’ glint in her eyes. “I have an idea.” 

_Called it._

She stowed the photo in her yo-yo and easily swung over to Marinette’s balcony. Chat Noir landed lightly beside her.

“Aren’t you worried about your earrings timing out?” he asked.

Snow Bug shook her head. “No time limit.”

“Really? Wow.” He tried to imagine how different things would be without their miraculouses constantly chirping at them in warning. He shrugged it off. Now wasn’t the time.

“What’s the plan?” he asked her. This was familiar territory. Ladybug led, and Chat Noir followed, in any universe. 

“Okay. At your core, you and Chat Blanc are both _you_. You are heroes with a penchant for protecting others. Plagg says you have a ‘knight-in-shining-armor’ complex.”

Chat Noir crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes, annoyed. He could not deny that his kwami had indeed said that once or twice.

Snow Bug started pacing with her hands grasp behind her back, deep in thought. She stopped and stared at him for a full minute. Chat could see the wheels turning in her head.

“You were following clues, right? Doing your best to follow a logical pattern?” she asked.

“Yes…” Chat Noir answered uncertainly. 

“Do you trust me?”

“Always.”

She stepped closer, looking intently in his eyes. Chat wanted to back away… or step closer. He wasn’t sure which. He swallowed and forced his feet to remain planted where they were. He knew she had a plan. He only had to wait for her to share it.

“Ladybug’s strength is her brain.” She placed a gloved palm on his chest.

Chat successfully kept his breath from hitching, but it was a near thing. He desperately hoped that she couldn’t feel his pulse quicken under her fingers.

“Chat Noir’s strength is his heart,” the snow lady said. “You have good instincts. Use that.”

“LB is always telling me to think before I act.” Thank goodness his voice sounded normal.

Snow Bug gave him that patient, big sister smile. “Ladybug is your equal and opposite. She thinks with her head, you think with your heart. Trust it. She’ll realize it’s okay to think with your heart sometimes one day. I’m not saying it won’t take a while…” she trailed off teasingly. 

Chat Noir snorted. Ladybug following her heart? That will be the day.

“Patience,” she counseled again.

“Thanks for the reminder,” he grumbled.

“Anytime, KitKat. Now, where is your gut telling you Marinette is?”

Chat Noir considered that. Was it possible his instincts could lead him to her? He believed he could find Ladybug that way. His heart would always lead him to his other half. 

The problem was, he didn’t have a relationship like that with Marinette. His heart beat didn’t stutter when she sat next to him in class every morning. He didn’t wonder idly what she was doing at odd moments throughout the day. His mind didn’t go blank anytime her delicately soft skin brushed his. He didn’t look around for her whenever he caught a whiff of her vanilla and sugar scent. He didn’t feel that way for her.

Did he?

He sniffed the air experimentally a few times. His cat ears flicked in all directions. He turned his face to the south and leapt. 

He ran easily across rooftops, bounding over gaps and between buildings, pausing every so often to sniff and listen again. He wasn’t particularly looking for anything. He would have a feeling that a certain direction was the one he wanted and would go that way. It was simple once he was used to it.

He was aware of Snow Bug following him with every _zip_ of her yo-yo, but didn’t pay her much attention. She kept her distance so as not to distract him.

Eventually he stopped on a roof across from what looked like a dilapidated row of old warehouses. He sniffed again and the hair on the nape of his neck stood on end. He was in someone else’s territory. The sharp scent was everywhere. His ears flattened and a growl built in his chest.

Snow Bug landed beside him. “Down, Kitty.” She crouched and inspected the buildings he was looking at. “What have we got?” 

“I’m not sure yet,” Chat answered uncertainty. He was unsure of a lot of things. Like why he had stopped here, for instance. “Something—“ he broke off suddenly as it clicked.

The scent that had brought him to a stop and raised his hackles, it was _that_ scent. The one he had been tracking since yesterday. The icy smell of his friend’s kidnapper was all around him.

A second scent subtly made its way to him then. A faint whiff of vanilla and sugar. _Marinette._

A movement below caught his attention. Another cat was prowling toward one of the dilapidated buildings. His eyes narrowed. 

_Threat_ , his instincts identified. 

He ignored the warning hand on his arm and sprang after the white figure.

* * *

_“Marinette! Marinette!”_ An anxious little voice was prodding her, accompanied by insistent pokes to her cheek.

“Five more minutes,” Marinette mumbled.

“Marinette! You have to wake up now! Quickly, before he comes back!”

Marinette was curled up on the lumpy mattress with the itchy blanket tucked around her. She cracked an eye open. It was night. She could barely see the tiny red body floating in front of her face in the near darkness.

“Tikki?” she asked blearily. “Oh my gosh, Tikki!” Marinette bolted upright, suddenly wide awake. “Where have you been?” She was whisper shouting now, too.

“I’m so sorry, Marinette. I was asleep when he took you. I finally found you a few hours ago, but I hid until the akuma left to keep your identity safe. I’m really sorry.” Marinette had never seen the little ladybug kwami look so glum. 

“It’s okay, Tikki.” She cupped her hands around her little friend and cuddled her to her cheek. “I’m just glad you’re safe.” She sprang to her feet and stood in a power pose with her fists raised like she was about to start throwing punches. “It’s time to save Chat Noir! Tikki, spots—!”

She was interrupted when a hand curled around her mouth. An arm wrapped around her waist. A weight pressed lightly on her back and soft hair tickled her cheek. “None of that, please, Princess.” His warm breath caressed her ear.

Marinette froze. He was too close. She knew he wouldn’t hurt her, but she didn’t know how to get out of this.

She carefully wrapped her fingers around his forearm to gently pull his hand away from her mouth. 

_“GET AWAY FROM HER!”_ another voice roared.

She was snatched away and into a familiar pair of strong arms. She was carried several meters back in a single leap.

Her feet made contact with the bare floor. Her face was pressed against a chest clad in black leather. She breathed him in.

 _Chat Noir_. Her Chat. Her Kitty.

One arm was cradling her to his body. His other hand was brandishing his staff. 

“Get behind me, Princess,” her black cat ordered. 

She scurried closer to the wall. It was still dimly lit in the warehouse, but she knew that wouldn’t make a difference to the cat miraculous holders. Glowing green eyes narrowed at a matching pair of glowing blue ones.

She could barely make out Chat Noir’s black outline. Chat Blanc was easier to see in his white suit. She wondered how they looked to each other with their night vision. 

Chat Noir held his staff in both hands and spread his feet wide in a defensive crouch.

Chat Blanc growled, pulling his white baton from its place at the small of his back. “DON'T TOUCH HER!” He charged toward Marinette’s defender. His baton extended to staff length as he swung it.

“THAT'S MY LINE!” Chat Noir shouted back. 

A clang rang out as white met silver. Marinette gulped, eyes wide in fear. They were equally matched. 

“Please stop fighting,” she said quietly. Tears were starting to prick at her eyes again. Her stomach was twisting in knots. She felt like she was going to be sick.

The two young men jumped apart and charged again. Chat Noir feinted and cut to the right. He was luring the white cat further away from her, Marinette realized. 

Chat Noir leapt on top of the derelict truck. Chat Blanc sprang after him. Steel clashed on steel again. Neither had landed a blow yet. It was only a matter of time. Both of them were going to be hurt.

Chat Noir flipped to the ground. Chat Blanc took to his favorite rafter, prepared to drop onto his opponent from above. Chat Noir hissed and prepared himself to block.

 _“Stop it!”_ Marinette shouted weakly. Tears were spilling down her face now. Neither of them heard her.

Chat Blanc pounced. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adrien, dude. You are so in denial. "I don't get the warm fuzzies whenever Marinette is around and think about her constantly when she isn't." Uh huh. Yeah. Sure. We totally believe you. *eye roll* (He totally does all those things.)
> 
> Anyway, drop me a comment and let me know what you think! Thanks! <3


	5. Snow Angel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow Bug does what she does best.

Marinette watched in silence, wishing desperately that she could stop the cat fight. 

Chat Blanc was falling toward her partner with his staff raised over his head. Chat Noir tensed and raised his staff to block. 

A loud _‘click’_ sounded in the room and the warehouse flooded with light.

Chat Blanc dropped to the floor without following through on his attack.

Both young men squinted and hissed in unison as they were temporarily blinded. 

Marinette looked to the large door where a woman stood with her hand on a main breaker switch. 

She was beautiful. Pure white with an aura of power and calm confidence about her. One couldn't help but be drawn to her. She could tell from a glance that whoever she was, she was incredible.

 _“CHAT!”_ Even her voice rang with authority. Then the image was ruined when she crossed her arms over her chest and threw her hip to the side with a cocky smirk on her face. 

_Huh?_ That was one of Chat Noir’s signature poses.

“What have you been up to? You naughty kitty,” the white woman cooed playfully. 

Chat Blanc looked over his shoulder at the newcomer. His demeanor instantly changed. His attack stance relaxed. His cat ears perked up and a smile lit his face. 

“Snow Angel!” The white cat snapped his baton shut and bounded over to her eagerly. Marinette and Chat Noir were completely forgotten. 

Chat Blanc gathered the woman's hands in his and held their entwined fingers to his sternum. He bent down and started nuzzling her face, purring like a giant cat. “I missed you, Love.”

“Snow Angel?” Marinette whispered to Chat Noir. Her cat stood beside her looking just as dazed as she felt with the sudden change of events.

“Nickname,” he muttered, collapsing his staff as well. “That’s Snow Bug.”

Snow Bug closed the last few centimeters of distance between herself and her cat. She reached up on her tiptoes and nuzzled him back. “Me too, my Love.” Chat Blanc's purring kicked up a notch.

“Another akuma?” Marinette asked. 

Chat Noir shook his head. “Neither of them are akumatized. It’s a long story.”

Chat Blanc’s hands dropped to Snow Bug’s waist and his tail curled around her hips. She slid her hands over his shoulders and wrapped her arms around his neck. Nuzzling became brushing noses and soft kisses. They pulled each other closer and the kisses became deeper.

“Uh… Do you think we should say something?” Chat Noir asked awkwardly. 

Marinette looked at him. He was blushing at the intimate display playing out in front of them. All of her pent up stress from the last two days and relief at seeing her partner again bubbled up inside her. She wanted to laugh. 

Instead she lurched over to a corner and retched.

“Marinette!” Chat Noir was at her side instantly, rubbing her back soothingly. “Are you hurt? Are you sick? What’s wrong? What did he do to you?” The last question came out with an angry bite. 

She wiped her mouth with the back of a shaky hand. 

“I’m okay. He didn’t hurt me. I’m fine. Just... it’s been a lot.” She tried to give him a reassuring smile. It came out a bit weak. She really needed a hot meal and her own bed.

“Princess.” It came out halfway between a groan and a sigh. He pulled her into his chest, wrapping both arms around her and resting his cheek on her head.

Marinette sighed and melted into his embrace. It had been a rough couple of days. 

She would have been happy to stay there, but her body wasn’t having it. She tried to grab Chat Noir’s arms as her knees gave out. Her hands were shaking and her strength was gone. She was starting to feel nauseated again.

Chat Noir caught her and lifted her into his arms bridal style.

Marinette sensed shadows hovering over her. She looked up weakly into three brilliant pairs of masked eyes. 

Snow Bug narrowed her eyes at Chat Blanc and smacked his shoulder with the back of her hand. “What did you do?” she scolded.

Chat Blanc cowered before the woman with his eyes downcast and his cat ears flat against his hair in shame. He ducked his head and scrunched his shoulders, making himself look as small as possible. 

“I’m sorry, M’lady. I was trying to keep her safe. I got Hawkmoth, but Mariposa got away from me. I...wasn’t thinking clearly.” 

Marinette reached out weakly and placed a hand on the woman’s white sleeve. The material felt just like her Ladybug suit. She was clearly a miraculous holder. “Please don’t be mad at him. I don’t think he knew what he was doing.”

Snow Bug sighed and hung her head. “I’m sorry, Marinette. You’re right, of course. Please forgive him. He suffered some trauma a while back and doesn’t do well when we’re separated, even for short periods of time.”

Chat Blanc wrapped his arms around Snow Bug from behind and nuzzled the side of her face lightly. “You got that right,” he muttered. He rested his chin on her white hair and looked at Marinette. “I am truly sorry, Mlle. Dupain-Cheng. I’m not myself without my Lady.” 

_His Lady._ Marinette studied Snow Bug's face. It was her own face. _She was Ladybug._ Marinette remembered her first impression of this woman. She was amazing. Is that how her partner saw Ladybug?

Her attention was redirected to Chat Blanc. Marinette realized he had stepped forward and taken one of her hands with a bow.

Chat Noir stiffened and held her a little tighter, but didn't pull her away.

“Please, do forgive me.” Chat Blanc looked at her from his bent position and cocked his head to the side. His cat ears were drooping, and his lips were puckered in a pout. Then he unleashed _those_ eyes on her.

Marinette closed her eyes and turned her face into her partner’s chest, groaning. “Not the kitten eyes,” she whined. She looked at Chat Blanc again and gave the hand still holding hers a gentle squeeze. The corners of her mouth pulled up into a timid smile. “I forgive you. I’m glad you found your Lady.”

“Thank you, Marinette.” He released her hand and cuddled his partner again. “I promise I’ll do my best to stick to her like whiskers on a kitten.”

“Ugh, please don’t start that again,” Snow Bug groused.

“Sorry. You accepted the ring. You’re stuck with me, Snow Angel.”

She flicked his white bell playfully. “Silly kitty.”

Chat Noir cleared his throat. “I’m going to take Marinette home.”

Snow Bug nodded in acknowledgment. “We’ll catch up with you soon. There’s something I need to take care of first.”

Chat Noir didn’t waste any time in carrying Marinette away. She happily consented to being held securely in his arms the whole trip back to her home.

They were silent as Chat ghosted over the rooftops. Marinette was being lulled to sleep by the steady rhythm of his chest rising and falling with his even breaths.

A swarm of glowing silver and white ladybugs passed them on their way to different parts of the city. Marinette smiled tightly to herself. That was one less thing she would need to take care of later. Snow Bug’s miraculous cure would take care of anything Chat Blanc had done in his partner’s absence.

“He really loves her,” Marinette muttered drowsily. Her eyes were falling closed. She turned her face away from the night air whipping at them and cuddled closer to him for warmth. 

“Yes. He really does,” Chat Noir confirmed softly.

* * *

Under normal circumstances Chat Noir would drop Marinette off on her balcony, but being kidnapped and missing for two days didn’t fall in the ‘normal’ category.

The black-clad hero landed in front of the side door of the bakery that led to the family residence. 

He glanced down at the ravenette in his arms. She was asleep. 

_Cute_ , the unbidden thought crossed his mind.

“Marinette? Princess?” he gently coaxed.

She blearily peeled her eyes half open and looked up at him through those thick lashes of hers. She blinked slowly, then turned her attention to the door, noticing where they were.

“Doorbell,” she muttered thickly. 

Chat rang the bell and waited. It didn’t take long.

His enhanced hearing picked up two sets of footsteps on the stairs. He braced himself as the door flew open. Marinette’s parents were standing on the threshold in their nightclothes, staring wide-eyed at the pair.

Marinette put on the best smile she could manage. “Hi, Maman, Papa. I’m home.”

Tom and Sabine both burst into tears as they pulled Chat Noir—with Marinette still in his arms—inside. Tom shut the door, and Chat tried not to yowl in surprise as he found himself in the center of a dog pile. The Dupain-Chengs cried and laughed as they clung to each other in a tangled heap on the floor. 

Mme. Cheng thanked him and kissed his cheek. M. Dupain clapped him on the back. Chat was grateful he had his suit to take most of the impact.

The group eventually disentangled themselves and stood again. Sabine helped Marinette upstairs. 

Chat was about to take his leave when a firm hand landed on his shoulder. 

“Come on up. Sabine made soup,” Tom said.

Chat didn’t dare turn down his invitation. It had been three years since the ‘Weredad’ incident and this towering man still intimidated him. He meekly followed M. Dupain up the stairs.

Chat Noir and Marinette were seated at the kitchen peninsula and each given a bowl of ginger wonton soup and a glass of water. It smelled heavenly.

It was at this point that Chat realized it had been several hours since his last meal. He ate eagerly. When was the last time he had a home cooked meal? His father’s chef’s meals didn’t count.

Marinette slowly sipped at her broth, giving her stomach time to adjust to eating again.

The questions started coming somewhere around the middle of Chat’s second bowl. 

Tom got the ball rolling with, “What happened?”

Chat was about to come up with something brilliant to say like ‘Uhhh,’ when Marinette saved him.

“It was an akuma. He had lost something and thought I could help him find it.” She shrugged. “Crazy akuma logic, am I right? Chat Noir and Ladybug stopped the akuma and he brought me home.”

Chat Noir was impressed with how smoothly she lied. It was a little disturbing, actually. And why was she covering for the visiting heroes and Ladybug?

“My goodness,” Sabine said. “We hadn’t heard anything about an akuma. It’s actually been pretty quiet.”

“We were starting to wonder,” added Tom. “It’s been a while since the last one. I guess the dusty old moth decided to try something low key this time, huh? But he was still no match for our heroes.” His eyes shone like a kid’s on Christmas morning.

Chat sipped his water and thought back. He had been so focused on the Marinette situation that he hadn’t noticed. They were right. There hadn’t been an akuma attack in four days. Hawkmoth was pretty consistent with sending one at least every other day. He’d have to talk it over with Ladybug... if she ever returned his messages, that is. He pushed it to the back of his mind. It was too late to deal with that tonight.

Marinette had finished her broth and was nibbling at a piece of baguette, continuing to pace herself so as not to be sick again. 

Chat was slowing down as he finished his third bowl of soup.

Sabine gently placed a hand on her daughter’s arm. “Marinette, let’s get you cleaned up and tucked into bed, all right, sweetie?” 

“‘Kay,” Marinette replied. She slowly started lifting herself down from her stool. Chat stood quickly and placed a steadying hand on her other elbow, ready to catch her if she fell.

Sabine wrapped an arm around her once she was on her feet and started leading her to the bathroom for a quick shower.

Marinette stopped after a few steps and looked back at him. “Thank you for rescuing me, Chat Noir. You really are my hero.” 

Chat’s heart warmed at the smile she was giving him. “Any time. Goodnight, Marinette.”

The mother and daughter rounded the corner. Chat Noir took that as his opening to make a graceful exit. “Thank you for the meal,” he said to Tom. “I really should be going now.”

Tom placed his massive hands on the boy’s shoulders. “It was the least we could do, son. Thank you for bringing our baby girl home.”

Chat merely nodded. He didn’t trust himself to speak. There was so much naked gratitude and sincerity in Tom’s words and face. If the situation had been reversed, Adrien’s father would not be thanking his rescuer for the safe return of his son. Gabriel would probably be demanding to know why it took so long.

Once again Chat was grateful for his suit’s protection when Tom picked him up and crushed him in a bear hug. The teen was eventually able to escape and let himself out after a final goodbye. He wasn’t sure what time it was. Probably late enough to be considered early morning. 

He was about to vault back to his house when a high pitched whistle called his attention. He looked up and spied Chat Blanc staring down at him from Marinette’s balcony. 

Chat Noir extended his staff and lifted himself to the balcony. He stepped onto the railing and crouched with practiced ease. Snow Bug was up there too, sitting elegantly on the giant wooden spool Marinette used as a table.

“Sorry,” the white cat said. “I know you're tired. Just wanted to let you know we are up here.”

“Bunnyx hasn’t come to collect you yet?” Chat Noir asked.

“She did back at the warehouse right after you left, but my Snow Angel asked her to wait until tomorrow. She has a few things she wants to do before we head home.”

“Will you two be okay up here?”

Chat Blanc smirked. It was weird seeing his smirk on someone else’s face. “We’ll be fine. Get some sleep, Agreste.” 

Chat Blanc and Chat Noir’s cat ears twitched when they heard Sabine and Marinette enter the bedroom below. 

“I’ll see you in the morning.” Chat Noir took his baton from his back and prepared to leave. 

“Good night, Adrien,” Snow Bug said very softly, so as not to be overheard by Marinette’s mother. The cats could hear her just fine. 

Hearing his sweet Lady’s voice say his name did funny things to him. Even though he knew she wasn’t _his_ Lady, it was still her voice.

Chat Blanc growled lightly under his breath. Just a friendly warning to his counterpart.

Chat Noir tossed them a two-finger salute and back flipped off the railing.

Adrien dropped his transformation as soon as his boots hit his bedroom floor. He managed to shrug out of his clothes and into a pair of pajamas before crashing into his bed. 

“Wake me up in three days,” he mumbled into his pillow. 

Plagg didn’t hear him. He was already passed out in a Camembert-induced coma.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Phew! She's finally home! *stretches arms and back cracks* We are in the home stretch now. I'm actually really excited for tomorrow's chapter. It's my favorite. ¬‿¬
> 
> Initially this was split into two chapters. I had just finished making the final adjustments to the first half, when that nagging sense in the back on my mind compelled me to combine this with the next chapter. I hope you all appreciate the extra effort it took to get this out. ;)
> 
> Let me know what you think in the comments! <3


	6. Black and White

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Plagg vs. Plagg you always wanted and never knew you needed. XD The boys have a little chat as well.

Adrien did not, in fact, sleep for three days. His body was too accustomed to waking promptly at six to let him sleep in.

He technically had school today, but he decided to ditch his morning classes. He would make it to class later. Eventually. Probably. 

He dropped silently onto Marinette’s balcony just as sunrise transitioned to full daylight. The sight that met him brought back all the stabs of jealousy from the previous evening.

Chat Blanc was cuddled up with Snow Bug under a quilt in one of Marinette’s lounge chairs, fast asleep. ‘Sleep with my Lady under the stars’ was a long standing item on his bucket list.

Chat Blanc cracked open a blue eye at him. Chat Noir stared back, doing his best to appear nonchalant.

The white cat kissed his Lady’s hair and carefully extricated himself. She merely rolled over. Blanc lovingly tucked the quilt around her before stepping closer to Noir. He stretched while surveying the waking city. “Race you to Bois de Boulogne?”

“What about her?” Chat Noir asked, indicating Snow Bug. 

Chat Blanc chuckled lightly and flipped open the phone feature on his white baton. “Don’t worry about her. She’ll sleep until noon if we let her.” 

He tapped at the screen. Chat Noir heard Snow Bug’s yo-yo buzz with a new message.

“And you?” The subtext of Chat Noir’s question hung thick in the air.

“I’ll be alright. It usually takes about twelve hours for the crazy to set in.”

Chat Noir pondered Blanc’s situation. A curse that drove him crazy if he went longer than twelve hours without being around his Lady? It didn’t sound so bad. He wasn’t sure he wasn’t developing such a syndrome on his own anyway. His current tolerance was about a week. Extended business trips already felt like torture.

Chat Blanc perched on the railing, grinning. The tip of his belt tail twitched in anticipation. “Ready?”

He hopped up next to his counterpart. “Set.”

“Go!”

They leaped at the same time and tore off towards the park.

* * *

There was no clear winner to their race. The young men were pretty equally matched. 

They crashed through the trees of the old royal hunting grounds until they dropped to the ground in a secluded spot away from morning joggers.

“Claws in.”

Adrien regarded his platinum blond, older self. He was a little taller and a little broader in the chest than current Adrien. The last traces of baby fat were finally gone from his jawline. He was wearing dark wash jeans, a blue dress shirt and a black leather jacket. It wasn’t a bad look.

Unrepentant cackling sounded next to Adrien’s shoulder. “You look ridiculous!” Plagg guffawed. He was bent double, one stubby arm holding his belly, the other pointing at the white cat kwami with blue eyes hovering near his holder’s shoulder.

White Plagg crossed his arms and grinned evilly. _“_ _My Sugarcube doesn’t think s_ _o,"_ he purred. His words were dripping with implications.

Plagg stopped laughing. “Hey, kid. Cheese me. I’m gonna need it to put up with this punk.”

“I bet my kid’s piece of Camembert is bigger than yours,” White Plagg taunted.

“Is not!”

“Shut up, Plagg,” both Adriens said in unison.

Soon Plagg held a piece of his beloved cheese between his paws. “Come on. Let’s leave these dorks to talk for a few minutes. I bet we can find some squirrels to torment.”

“Right behind you.” White Plagg floated after him into the trees with his own chunk of smelly cheese.

“Stay out of trouble,” older Adrien called after them exasperatedly.

“We will,” the kwamis chorused back.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Adrien said as he looked in the direction the cat spirits had disappeared among the leaves.

“As long as we don’t have to call Snow to fix whatever they destroy we’ll be fine.”

Older Adrien started walking down a trail with his hands in his jacket pockets sans thumbs, just as they had been taught in order to keep their shoulders from rounding forward. 

Adrien walked at his side with his hands similarly tucked into his jeans pockets.

Their companionable silence was only interrupted by a soft breeze rustling the leaves and a few birds greeting the morning. The air was still slightly cool as the sun continued to climb above the horizon.

It was like being in another world out here among the trees; away from the familiar buildings, sounds, smells and people of the city. 

Adrien added ‘stroll through the woods with my Lady’ to his bucket list. He was feeling the kind of contentment one only finds in nature.

Then a thought took root in his mind which disturbed the inner peace he was enjoying. Threads of additional thoughts began weaving through the first until a nervous energy began itching and crawling up his spine. Curiosity was setting his nerves on end.

After a few minutes, older Adrien broke the silence. “You can ask.”

“How did it happen?” Adrien blurted out. “How did you finally get her to agree to sharing identities? What finally made her realize you were the guy for her? How did you propose? What was the wedding like? Did she cry? I bet she cried. How—”

Older Adrien stopped walking. He ran a hand over his face then through his hair. “Ugh. Okay. I see her point now,” he said to himself. “First of all, I never ‘get’ that woman to do anything. She does things on her own terms. She’s stubborn. I know you find that irresistible, but you have to get over it. No grand romantic gesture will ever speed up her timetable. Trust me. I’ve failed _e_ _very time_.”

Adrien felt like he had been struck. What did he mean there was nothing he could do? Why wouldn’t his plans work? His plans were solid! Then again… listening always did seem to get him further than roses when it came to Ladybug.... 

“Second,” older Adrien continued, “you don’t have to _do_ anything to make her fall in love with you. All you have to do is grit your teeth and practice some _patience_. I know it’s the most frustrating thing in the world, but I promise that she will get there. All you have to do is continue being a nice guy _and not screw it up by pushing too hard._ ”

The platinum blond closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose before taking a calming breath.

Adrien tentatively raised a hand, but hesitated to place it on the other man's shoulder. “Hey, are you okay? Do we need to go back?”

Older Adrien forced his shoulders to relax. “Sorry. No, I’m fine. I just… really wish I could tell you everything. It’s so _frustrating_ knowing how close you two are and how much you want to be together, but your only ally is time.”

“We’re close? Like, how close?” Adrien asked. He was trying not to sound too eager. He wasn’t sure he was succeeding.

Older Adrien released his nose and glared at him. “Cool it, Agreste. You’re only making things harder for yourself.” 

“But I’ve already been waiting for _three years_ _!_ Can't you tell me—“

“NO! And I swear that if you keep pestering me about hints to help you win her over, we’re going to find out just how thin my patience without Ma-M’lady around truly is. Got it?” Older Adrien was nearly growling by this point. 

Adrien finally conceded. He wasn’t going to win this one. He dropped his gaze and toed a stick on the ground by his feet. “Sorry. I just want to make her happy.”

Older Adrien slung his arm around Adrien’s neck in a playful headlock and pulled him forward along the trail again. “I know, and you will. Just not today.” He released Adrien’s neck and gave him a friendly shove.

They were silent for another few minutes as they walked and Adrien absorbed everything his counterpart had told him. 

_Patience_. Snow Bug had also counseled him to be patient. It would be hard, but if it was the only way to win his Lady’s heart he would find a way. 

Evil sounding laughter on their left brought the pair to a halt again. 

“Did you see the way they ran?” one Plagg cackled. 

“I know!” the other Plagg gleefully replied. “They’ll never be able to find that acorn stash again!”

“It sounds like you two had fun,” older Adrien remarked as both kwamis appeared through a gap in the trees.

“Eh, it was okay,” White Plagg said with a shrug. “Is it breakfast time yet? I’m hungry.”

“Sorry, pal. You’re going to have to wait until we get home. Speaking of which,” older Adrien switched his attention to the sunshine blond, “we should probably get going. Are you ready?”

“Sure.” Adrien brought up his right hand where his miraculous resided on his ring finger. “Plagg, claws out!”

“Wait! I wasn—” Whatever Plagg was saying was cut off as he was sucked into the ring. Green energy crackled over Adrien’s body, transforming him back to Chat Noir.

“So…” drawled White Plagg. “Exactly how much trouble would that guy be in with his Tikki if I let slip to his holder that Ladybug is actually pi—” 

The mischievous kwami never got the chance to finish his sentence. He was cut off when older Adrien also called for his transformation. A similar wave of sparking blue energy washed over his body and he was Chat Blanc once again.

Chat Blanc’s baton was beeping with a new message. He pulled it from his back and thumbed open the phone screen. “M’lady says she’ll meet us at the Tower.”

“Race you there?” Chat Noir asked, stretching his arms in front of him with his fingers laced together, and rolling his head to get any kinks out of his neck.

“On three?” Chat Blanc asked.

Chat Noir planted a boot in the dirt and twisted his toes back and forth a few times to make sure he had a solid pushing off point.

“Three!” both young men cried together.

It was a beautiful morning for a run.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I LOVE Plagg vs. Plagg! It is seriously my favorite little moment in this. When I first wrote it, I copied their little banter and sent it to pretty much everyone I know. XD I also love the brothers dynamic going here. So much Adrien goodness.
> 
> Drop a kudo if it made you smile. :) Thanks for all the comments, everyone! I treasure each and every one of them. They really make my day. <3


	7. Merely a Memory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls have a picnic breakfast and bond over baked goods. *passes tissues*

Marinette spread a pink tablecloth with a white lace pattern over the oversized wooden spool on her balcony. Snow Bug was standing nearby with plates and cutlery, ready to set their table for breakfast. Tikki was perched comfortably on her shoulder.

Marinette had considered inviting her counterpart to detransform, but she knew Snow Bug had her reasons for staying in her super suit. They couldn’t risk anyone noticing Marinette with her doppleganger. Keeping their identities secret was her top priority.

She suspected Snow Bug had another reason for keeping her mask on, but she hadn’t been able to guess what it was yet.

Sabine had brought up a tray for Marinette’s breakfast earlier. She and Tom had insisted that she stay home from school today to recover from her ordeal. Marinette wasn’t complaining. It wasn’t everyday she got to spend time with herself from a parallel reality. 

After Marinette was sure her parents were preoccupied with the morning rush in the bakery, she and Tikki had snuck to the apartment’s kitchen for extra dishes and a second helping of everything. 

It was quite the picturesque scene with Marinette in a comfortable white eyelet sundress and a pink cardigan, sitting across from her guest with her white hair and suit. Their table was set with white China. A basket of her father’s baked goods and a carafe of orange juice sat on the table between them. 

It was clear and sunny out. Marinette’s sun sail provided just the right amount of cover to protect them from the glare of the morning sun. The flowering plants scattered around the space were in full bloom, releasing their delicate perfume on what was promising to be a warm day.

Marinette wished she could take a picture, but she couldn’t have evidence like that for someone like Alya—or, far worse, Hawkmoth—to discover. No, this morning would have to live as merely a memory in her heart.

“After you,” the ravenette invited, gesturing to the breads and pastries. 

Snow Bug hesitated, then placed a pain au chocolat on her plate.

Marinette poured herself a glass of orange juice as she surreptitiously watched her guest break off a piece of flaky pastry with her delicate fingers and slowly place it in her mouth. 

Snow Bug’s eyes closed and she bowed her head. Marinette watched her shoulders shudder as she chewed.

“Hey,” Marinette reached across the small table to place her hand on the other woman’s gloved one. “Are you okay? Can I get you anything?”

Snow Bug looked up at her with tears gleaming in her bluebell eyes, a bright but sad smile on her lips. “I’ll be alright. It’s been a while since I last tasted one of these, that’s all.” 

After a pause Snow Bug asked, “How much do you know? About what’s going on with me and Chat Blanc being here, I mean.”

Marinette broke off her own bit of sweet roll and chewed it thoughtfully as she compiled her thoughts. She glanced at Tikki. Her kwami was quietly sitting on the edge of the table eating a strawberry danish, watching the two young women but clearly willing to let the conversation unfold without her assistance.

“You—you’re me. You and Chat Blanc are not akumas. He is two years older than my Chat, so I’m guessing you’re from the future? Your Chat mentioned something about Bunnyx.”

Snow Bug dashed away the unshed tears. “Chat Blanc and I are not akumas. We are also not from your future. Do you remember the time Bunnyx pulled us into a future where Chat Noir had been akumatized and all of Paris was destroyed?”

Marinette shuddered. How could she forget? She still had nightmares sometimes. “Yes, but I went back and erased my name from Adrien’s present. He never found out my identity and it never got back to Chat Noir and he was never akumatized.”

Snow Bug nodded. “You did. I’m from a parallel timeline where I made a different choice. I saved Chat Noir from the akuma, but chose to stay with him instead of changing the past.”

“But, what about Paris? It was destroyed. All those people! You couldn’t have—.” Marinette's words broke off mid sentence. She looked into Snow Bug’s steady eyes. The truth hit her and Marinette gasped, eyes wide. Both hands flew to cover her mouth with her fingers. There was only one power she knew of that could undo that much destruction.

“You didn’t,” she whispered.

Snow Bug maintained her gaze and nodded again. “We did.”

“But, but the price!” She slammed her palms on the makeshift table. The impact made the flatware rattle.

Snow Bug took one of Marinette’s hands in reassurance. “It’s okay, Marinette. It was worth it.”

“What did you have to give up?” She was afraid she already knew the answer.

Tears were welling up in Snow Bug’s eyes again. Marinette could tell how badly the other woman was trying to hold herself together by the way the tip of her nose was turning red. “M-Maman. Pa-pa,” she hiccuped.

Marinette dashed around the table and threw her arms around Snow Bug. Fat tears streamed down her face as she tightly hugged her other self. Snow Bug clung onto her in return. Both young women sobbed their emotions out. 

Tikki nestled in Marinette’s hair and placed a loving paw on the other’s white head.

After a few minutes, Snow Bug pulled away and used a napkin to clean up her tear-stained face. “Thank you, Tikki. Thank you, Marinette.”

Marinette returned to her seat on wobbly legs. She didn’t know what to say as she mopped up her own tears. She couldn’t imagine having to give up her parents, let alone at the tender age of fourteen. She felt so much admiration and respect for this Ladybug. She didn’t think she could ever be that brave.

And all for her partner….

Tikki had resumed her place at the table. She had another danish between her paws. “How was the wedding?” the kwami chirped.

Snow Bug brightened with the change of topic. “You would have loved it, Tikki. It was small and intimate with just a few close friends. Adr— _Chat_ looked so handsome in his gray suit.” She sighed dreamily. “Best birthday ever.”

“Your wedding was on your birthday?” Marinette queried. She had always imagined being an April bride.

“The day I turned eighteen,” Snow Bug confirmed. “It had only been Chat and me for four years. We didn’t see any point in waiting longer than we had to. And, honestly, no one was surprised. Nonna probably would have signed the papers so that we could have been married on his birthday, but we figured we could wait a few months and set a good example for our children.”

Marinette stiffened. “ _Ch-children_ _?!_ Are you...?”

“No, we haven’t had a baby yet,” she laughed. “But someday we will. Chat is _really_ baby hungry. I told him he had to wait at least until I finished university. Fashion school is no joke. I can’t imagine juggling a pregnancy or baby and assignments. It would be too much.”

“If anyone can do it, it would be you, Marinette,” Tikki encouraged brightly. 

“Thanks, Tikki.” 

It was the first time someone had addressed her counterpart as ‘Marinette.’ It really drove home to younger Marinette that she was looking at a possible future version of herself. Granted one who looked different and had different experiences, but under the mask she was still Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Well, Marinette Whatever-Chat’s-Surname-Was, she supposed. She had always intended to take her husband’s family name. Hopefully Agreste. This Marinette had chosen differently. 

“I know,” Snow Bug said as she rubbed Tikki’s head with a gloved finger, “that my future isn’t what you expected. There have been plenty of hard times and rough patches; but, Marinette,” she fixed the younger woman with her masked eyes again, “it’s been so worth it. I’m so happy.” 

Her broad smile confirmed to Marinette that she was telling the truth. This other Marinette was really, truly happy. 

“I’m glad,” Marinette said sincerely, with her own wide smile. 

Snow Bug returned to her breakfast and ate her papa’s baked goods much more cheerfully than that first emotion-filled bite. 

The two girls and kwami chatted and laughed until all the pastries and juice were gone. When they were finished, they neatly cleared away the dishes and linens to be taken back downstairs and washed.

Snow Bug flipped open her yo-yo. “It’s almost time,” she remarked. She typed out a message and returned the device to her hip. 

She gave Marinette a warm hug. “Thank you, Marinette. This was a lovely picnic."

Marinette returned the embrace. She noted with mixed feelings that the other woman wasn’t much taller than herself. “Me too. You are welcome anytime, but let’s maybe forgo the kidnapping if we ever meet again.”

Snow Bug pulled back and laughed. “Deal.”

Marinette felt her studying her face. She could tell the other was making a decision. “Hey, Marinette? Do you mind if I give you some advice?”

Marinette’s shoulders drooped. “You’re not going to tell me to give up on Adrien and start dating Chat Noir, are you?”

“What? No, of course not, but what I have to say does concern both of them.”

“Adrien and Chat?” Marinette asked, mystified. What could she possibly have to say that would concern both boys?

“Adrien and Chat Noir aren’t that dissimilar. They are both lonely boys from broken homes. They need more love and kindness than they are getting from their families. They need _you_ , Marinette. Not as a girlfriend, just as a friend. Please do your best to take care of both of them, okay?”

Marinette was not expecting that. She tried to digest the other’s words.

“You don’t want me to date Adrien?”

“I’m not saying that. I’m saying that he needs someone to support him and care for him. They both do. If you eventually start to date Adrien, I’ll be really happy for you, but maybe wait for him to make the first move. I know it will be hard, but you can do this. You are Ladybug, with or without the mask. You take the things that are broken and make them whole again. You can do that for Adrien and your partner too. Trust me.”

Marinette found herself nodding. “Okay. I’ll do my best.” 

It would take several cups of hot chocolate and probably more than one pint of ice cream to unpack what Snow Bug just told her. She could foresee many late night conversations with her kwami over this in her near future. 

“Thank you.” Snow Bug’s attitude turned professional as she fisted her hands on her hips, striking her superhero pose. “Now, do you want to come to the Tower with me and say goodbye before Bunnyx takes us home?”

Marinette transformed into her red, spotted, alter ego in a flash of sparkling pink light. Her yo-yo immediately starting pinging incessantly.

“What the—?” Ladybug opened her yo-yo’s phone feature and started scrolling down the screen with a finger.

“What is it?” Snow Bug asked. 

Ladybug frowned. “It’s Chat Noir. He’s left me over a dozen messages in the last two days!” She looked at her counterpart with an expression somewhere between exasperation and bewilderment. 

Snow Bug did her best to hide her smile. “He must have been really worried about civilian-you.”

“I guess....” Ladybug finished scrolling and snapped her yo-yo shut. “Anyway, lead the way.”

The two heroines flicked out their yo-yos and swung across the city to meet up with their cats.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What you didn't see was Snow Bug crying herself to sleep last night, knowing that her parents were just downstairs. Fortunately, she had her cat to hold her all night. *sniff*
> 
> Kudos and comments always appreciated. Have a beautiful day, all you lovely people. <3


	8. More Important Than You Know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The heroes go home.  
> Ladybug sees her partner in a new light.  
> Adrien starts to wake up.

The trip to the closed platform on the Eiffel Tower seemed to take no time at all. Both Chats were already there and they were… wrestling?

“Okay, boys, break it up,” Snow Bug ordered playfully with that little smirk she got when she was teasing.

Ladybug rolled her eyes at their antics, but she was happy to see Chat Noir have someone to play with. She suspected that her partner was an only child like herself. He would have done well with a brother to horse around with. 

A vision floated before her eyes. Two dark haired little boys were crawling all over a man with tousled blond hair. The boys couldn’t be older than three and five. She could almost hear their little laughs and squeals of delight as they lost the tickle fight with their father.

She shook her head to clear it. Adrien was her one true love, but the scene _h_ _ad_ been charming...

“Good morning, Snow Angel.” Chat Blanc bounced over to his wife and wrapped her in a hug. He planted a quick kiss on her lips, then frowned slightly, sniffing her. “Pain au chocolat without me?” he pouted. 

“We got you covered. Don’t you worry your pretty little head, my Love.” She showed him the large box of baked goods Marinette had packed for them. 

He peeked inside the box. “All those croissants…” he said reverently. 

“Are you crying?” Snow Bug asked. 

Chat Blanc sniffed wetly.

“Hello, M’lady,” Chat Noir said to Ladybug, pulling her attention away from the couple. “I haven’t seen you in a while.” The greeting was friendly, but Ladybug knew her partner well enough to hear the frosty edge to his words. He was upset with her for her absence the last few days, but there was no way she could explain without revealing who she was under the mask.

“Hello, Chat.” She ducked her head a little in apology. “I’m sorry I was out of touch for so long. Something unexpectedly came up in my civilian life. I ran into Snow Bug this morning and she filled me in on what happened while I was away. I’m really glad she was there for you when I couldn’t be.” She tried to smile at him, hoping he wasn’t too mad at her. Her partner could get really pouty sometimes. 

“Fair maiden!” Chat Blanc cried, pretending to just now notice her. He plucked up her right hand and held it cupped between his own clawed hands. “How delightful it is to see you before we must depart. So long it has been since I have seen a lady clad in such a lovely shade of red. Your hair is as dark as the ink that flows from the poet’s pen. Your eyes are as blue as the tame sea that this poor soldier’s heart must soon embark upon. You look positively ravishing.” He placed a kiss on the back of her hand and looked at her through half-lidded eyes from beneath his lashes the way Chat Noir did when he was trying to be particularly flirty. 

Ladybug blushed a little at his antics. He may be teasing, but he had that smoldering look down to an art form. She could feel Chat Noir bristling at her side. 

“All right. That’s enough out of you,” Snow Bug said, grabbing her husband by his white cat ear.

“Ow. My Love. Ow,” Chat Blanc protested, wheeling his arms for balance as Snow Bug pulled him away. 

For her part, Ladybug giggled softly with her fingers pressed to her lips. They made a nice couple. She enjoyed watching their playful banter. Chat Blanc was a different person with his partner around to balance him and keep him, well, sane. 

Ladybug’s musings were interrupted by one of Bunnyx’s portals opening in the air nearby. The rabbit-themed superhero poked her head out and surveyed the scene. “Hey, guys. Ready to go home?”

Snow Bug released Blanc’s ear. “We’ll be right there.”

Bunnyx nodded. “Sorry I can’t stay and chat. Next time.” She waved to the group and disappeared into her burrow again, leaving the portal open for Chat Blanc and Snow Bug’s exit.

Snow Bug gave Ladybug a hug and thanked her for her hospitality. “Take care of them,” she whispered. 

Ladybug tightened her hug on the other woman. She understood. Adrien, Chat Noir, her parents—there were so many people both Marinettes cared about and wanted to be happy. "I will," she answered just as softly.

Snow Bug released her and turned to Chat Noir. “Good bye, Chat Noir. Good luck.”

Chat Noir smirked and gave her one of his overly dramatic bows, “It was my pleasure to work with you, Lady Snow.”

Snow Bug giggled silently with her eyes closed and her fingertips covering her lips in appreciation of his theatrics. 

“Watch each other’s backs,” Chat Blanc advised. “Oh, and for the love of miraculous, do yourselves a favor and pick up a book or five on communication, because you both suck at it.”

“Hey!” the teens chorused at him. 

Chat Blanc shrugged. “I just call ‘em like I see ‘em.” He shot them a two-fingered salute. “See you around.” He picked up the cardboard pastry box by its handle and stepped to his partner’s side. “And you, Madame Blanc,” he swept Snow Bug up in a bridal style hold, making her shriek in surprise. “Let’s get you home.” He proceeded to carry her to the portal, ignoring her protests that she was perfectly capable of walking. 

He stopped and looked back at Chat Noir right before he stepped through the circle of light, as if he just remembered something. “Hey, Noir. Rose gold. Size four. Nothing larger than a carat. I went with the princess cut.” He winked and gave them his most devilish grin. 

“Chat!” Snow Bug gasped.

Ladybug’s felt her whole face flame bright red.

Chat Noir nodded. “I’ll be sure to remember that.”

Chat Blanc carried his blushing wife through the hole, the portal closed behind them and they were gone. 

The remaining superheroes stood silently, looking at where the entrance to Bunnyx’s burrow had been just seconds before. Their little adventure was over.

Ladybug let her cheeks cool from the embarrassment of Chat Noir being handed the specifications for her ideal engagement ring before trusting herself to speak. “We should get going. We’re late for school.”

Of course she wasn’t going to class today, but she couldn’t tell her partner that.

Chat Noir extended his baton to staff length in preparation for his departure. “Patrol tonight, M’lady?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t tonight.” She thought of her history paper due in the morning. She’d probably be up late working on it and catching up on her other missed assignments from this week as it was. Ugh, what a disaster. 

“I see.” Her partner was being carefully unexpressive, but he couldn’t stop the tip of his belt tail from twitching just a little. 

“But I’m free tomorrow night,” she offered. 

“Regular time?” he asked, nonchalantly. 

“Can you meet an hour earlier?” It was a peace offering for being absent the last few days. Of course it hadn’t been her fault, but Snow Bug had asked her to take extra care of her kitty. She was going to give it a try. 

Chat Noir couldn’t stop his ears and tail from reacting this time. They betrayed how surprised and pleased he was by her offer. “I’ll check my schedule.”

No immediate yes or flowery promises. Interesting. 

“See you tomorrow, Kitty.” Her yo-yo whipped out with a flick of her wrist and found an anchor point. “Bug out!”

She zipped home and got started on that homework. 

* * *

Adrien had missed the first half of his classes, but managed to turn up at school after lunch. Fortunately, everyone was so used to him missing classes because of his modeling work schedule that no one questioned it. 

“Adrien!”

Said model couldn’t see anything beyond a mass of auburn hair as he was tackled in front of his locker. 

“Alya! Umm, not that it isn’t great to see you, but could you get off me please?”

The girl backed up just enough to let him see the excited light shining in her bespectacled eyes. 

“Have you heard? She’s back! Mari’s back! Ladybug and Chat Noir rescued her! Our girl is home safe again!” She gave Adrien another rib-crushing hug.

Adrien looked over Alya’s head to see his smirking best friend. 

“Nino, a little help with your girlfriend, please?” Adrien pleaded. 

“Sorry, man. She’s just really happy. Come on, babe. Let the dude breathe.” Nino gently tugged on Alya’s elbow. 

Alya turned and latched onto Nino instead. He happily returned her embrace. “She’s home! She’s home!” Alya sang, bouncing a little on the balls of her feet.

“I know, babe.” Nino patted her hair. “I was there too.” He looked at Adrien over her bouncing curls. “Marinette texted us all this morning. Alya and I just got back from having lunch with her.”

Adrien frowned slightly and checked his phone. Sure enough he had several new texts in the thread he shared with Marinette, Alya and Nino. 

**[Marinette]** Hey guys. So I’m home safe and sound. I’ll tell you all about it when I see you. Do you want to come over for lunch today?

It was followed by several messages from Alya in all caps expressing her relief and promises that they would be there as soon as they could.

Adrien flushed. He wasn’t sure if it was more from embarrassment that he had missed the memo or frustration that he had missed having lunch with his friends. 

How had this happened? Oh, yeah. Because he was hanging out on the Eiffel Tower with a couple of alternate timeline superheroes and Ladybug, and hadn’t had his phone on him to get his messages. 

_Stupid_.

Alya managed to calm down enough to release her death grip on her boyfriend. “I was able to bring her all of her missed homework except history. Think you can take care of that for me, Sunshine?”

Adrien looked up from his phone. “Huh? Oh, yeah sure. I’ll run it by after school.” They hadn’t had any history assignments this week apart from the paper that was due tomorrow, but Alya didn’t need to know that.

The bell rang, reminding everyone to scurry off to their next classes. 

“Thanks, Centerfold,” Alya said. If Adrien had been paying more attention he would have seen the devious twinkle in her eye that she frequently got when it came to Adrien and Marinette.

Adrien was barely paying attention in his afternoon lectures. Something else the other Adrien had said on the Tower before their little wrestling match kept rolling around in his mind. 

_“Stick close to your friends—especially Marinette, Alya and Nino. She’s more important than you know.”_

‘She,’ not ‘they.’ _She_ is more important than he knows. Adrien was pretty sure it was a slip his counterpart hadn’t meant to make and wasn’t even aware he had committed.

Other Adrien had dropped quite a bit of advice for winning over Ladybug, so why this hint about Marinette? 

He kept puzzling over it, but no answer presented itself. 

The final bell eventually rang. Adrien slipped past his bodyguard and walked the few blocks to Tom and Sabine’s bakery. 

Sabine let him in and he found himself on the stairs leading to Marinette’s bedroom, knocking on her trapdoor.

“Come in!” her chipper voice called back. She sounded much better than she had last night. 

He raised the door and caught sight of the ravenette bent over her tablet at her desk. She was wrapped in a fluffy pink blanket and her hair was down. She was scribbling away with her stylus. He could tell she was concentrating on her work by the way her tongue was poking out between her lips.

Adrien reminded himself that this was supposed to be his first time seeing her since Monday as he let himself into her pink domain and closed the trapdoor behind him. 

_He_ hadn’t held her tight as he carried her home surrounded by her sweet vanilla scent, or noticed how comfortable her soft body was in his arms, or seen the way the city lights reflected in her half-lidded eyes as she slow-blinked at him. Nope, that was all Chat Noir. Adrien didn’t know any of those things.

“Hey, Marinette.”

Marinette whirled toward him in her office chair and almost tumbled off of it. “A-Adrien. Doing what you here? I-I mean, what are you doing here?” Her cheeks bloomed a soft pink.

Adrien set his bag on her desk and pulled up her other office chair, rolling closer to her. “I just came to check on you. I’m sorry I missed the invitation to lunch. I didn’t have my phone on me this morning. Work, you know?” He rubbed the back of his neck. Plagg had warned him about his tell. He was still a terrible liar when it came to this girl. “So what happened?” He rested his crossed arms on her desk and leaned forward, meeting her bluebell eyes. 

“Oh,” Marinette flushed just a shade darker. “There was this akuma and he thought I could help him get back something he lost, so he took me. But then Chat Noir found me and brought me home.”

“What about Ladybug?” His curiosity over her version of events was getting to him. 

“Oh, uh, she took care of the akuma while Chat Noir made sure I was safe.”

Huh. Marinette was still covering for his Lady’s absence. He wondered why, but couldn’t risk asking without sounding suspicious. 

Instead he said, “Wow. Saved by the Heroes of Paris again. That’s pretty cool, Marinette.”

“Chat Noir deserves most of the credit. I hope I can thank him one day.”

“I’m sure he knows.”

Adrien felt his heart rate speed up the tiniest bit at the same moment Marinette’s smile brightened her whole face, making her eyes sparkle. He was sure the timing was purely coincidental. 

“So what are you working on?” he asked, rolling closer to inspect her tablet screen.

“Just that history paper. I only need to write a few more paragraphs and my conclusion and I can start reviewing. After that I only have my math homework left to do.”

“Do you want me to help proofread your paper?” Adrien offered. 

“Oh, uh… you don’t have to.” Marinette looked down and blushed again. She tucked a short strand of dark hair behind her ear. It immediately rebelled and fell forward to frame her face once more. Adrien resisted the impulse to try brushing the teasing lock back for her. She met his eyes with that little smile that was so Marinette. “But I would appreciate having a second pair of eyes looking it over.”

Adrien’s smile widened. He liked helping his friends. He had blown off enough of his commitments this week, he couldn’t possibly get in any more trouble with Nathalie than he already was. He could spare another hour or two to read over her history report. He could probably take the time to help her with her math homework too before the Gorilla tracked him down. 

“I’d be happy to, Marinette.” He rested his right arm across the back of her chair to anchor himself so that he could read over her shoulder without accidentally pushing her wheeled chair away. The ends of her hair tickled his arm. His left hand lay on the desk near hers. His knee might be pressed against hers and there was barely a centimeter of space between their hips, but he could see her tablet screen much more easily now.

Her cheeks stayed that cute shade of pink as she went back to writing her paper. 

He watched her work until she was ready for him to help proofread. Had her eyes always been that blue?

 _“She’s more important than you know.”_ The words played in his head again. 

Adrien had always known there was something special about Marinette. He’d felt it from the first time they met. He didn’t know what it was, but he was looking forward to finding out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my giddy aunt, it's done. And I finally got my Adrienette fluff! How about that vision Ladybug had? I did not see that coming until I was writing it. 
> 
> To every one of you who has made it to the end with me, THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! Like, seriously, you are the best. Give yourself a hug from me (or not because that would be weird). This was a long road to get these two blind idiots to see each other a little more clearly, but we finally made it. A huge thank you for every single kudo, tumblr share and comment. You guys are so amazing I could cry. Until next time! Love to you all. -mlg

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on Tumblr [here](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/chanceuseladynoire). ♡


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